EPISODE VIII Details! Who is the New “Man in Black?”

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We’ve known for quite a while now that Episode VIIIwould be adding some intriguing new cast members to the Star Warsroster. Top among them, Benicio Del Toro and Laura Dern. But until recently we’ve had no real clue as to what their roles in the film would be. That all changed today with an article on Making Star Wars that detailed a few rumors about the new characters. Rumors they claim have gotten a “quiet thumbs up” from sources close to the film.

Dern’s character is being described as an aristocrat who is “fancy in a way that we haven’t really seen in Star Wars before.” Those who have actually gotten a glimpse of her in full costume have gone so far as to compare her to something out of the capital from The Hunger Games. This all seems to point to a little bit of political intrigue making its way into Episode VIII‘s plot. But it remains to be determined if Dern will be a villainous insider or sympathetic to the Resistance.

Del Toro, meanwhile, is referred to as a “classic man in black character” with a costume that is, naturally, all black. And although we’ve known he’ll be playing a villain for quite some time, this article claims that the other characters won’t necessarily know he’s a villain right away. This reveal has a few of the internet’s crankier critics crying “rip-off,” as a secret villain who betrays our heroes does sound a bit Empire Strikes Back-ish. But Making Star Wars also claims it has a few details about Del Toro’s character that they can’t reveal yet but will definitely help him feel like a lot more than Lando-2.

But what about you? Do these new details make you worry that Episode VIII is flying a little too close to Episode V? Or are we headed for truly uncharted territory in the Star Wars Universe? Let us know in the comments!